The financial pyramid - what it is: definition and value + main types and signs of financial pyramids

Hello dear readers of the financial magazine Rich Pro! Today we will tell you what a financial pyramid is, what signs financial pyramids have and how to recognize them at an early stage.

So, from this article you will learn:

• What is a financial pyramid and how does it work;
• The history of the pyramids;
• What types of financial pyramids exist and how to recognize them at an early stage;
• What is the difference between network marketing and the financial pyramid;
• and a lot of other useful information.

The article will be useful to everyone who is interested in financial matters, as well as those who wish not to lose money at such events. Do not waste your time! Read the article right now.

About financial pyramids, what it is, what types they are, the goals of creating pyramids - read on

1. What is a financial pyramid - the definition and meaning of the term

Financial pyramid (from an economic point of view) - this is a scheme specially created for generating income by attracting more and more new participants.

In other words, those who join the pyramid provide income to those who have come to it earlier.

There are other schemes where all funds are concentrated in only one person who is the organizer of the pyramid.

In Russia, when a financial pyramid is mentioned, the majority immediately thinks Mmm, which was actively promoted in the early nineties. When the pyramid collapsed, thousands of people suffered.

Most of the pyramids hide in their activities with a mask investment, as well as charities funds, companiesproducing fictitious goods give investors a promise to take money out of nowhere.

There are also another type of financial pyramid. It appears in some cases and as a result of conducting ordinary business. This happens if the organizer of the activity incorrectly calculated the profitability. As a result, instead of profit, losses are obtained; there is nothing to pay to creditors and investors.

To keep the business afloat, and those to whom its owner owes money do not sue, new loans are taken. The money received is sent to the extinguishment of previously taken obligations. It is not entirely true to consider such a scheme as fraud; rather, it refers to illegal business.

Often scammers cover the pyramid with doing business. There may be a small payout, but it is always less than the main contributions to the pyramid itself. Most imaginary income consists of contributions from investors.

2. The history of the emergence of financial pyramids 📚

The term "financial pyramid" fraud began to be called in England in the seventies. However, they appeared much earlier. The first pyramid (Organization of India Joint Stock Company) was created by John Law. to raise money for the development of the Mississippi.

For the first time, a structure similar to modern single-level pyramids appeared in 1919. The creator of the project was an American Charles Ponzi. It is by his surname that similar schemes are called today.

The deception was tied to coupons, which, as it turned out, were not subject to sale for cash. The only thing that could be done with them was exchange. Nevertheless, the first participants in the pyramid received income, naturally, due to the influx of new investors.

In Russia, the peak of activity of the pyramids occurred during the transition to a market economy. It was then that a huge scandal erupted with the MMM project.

Today, financial pyramids are prohibited in many states. In the United Arab Emirates, as well as in China for the creation of a financial pyramid may be awarded death penalty. In Russia, criminal liability is imposed for such actions.

See also the article "History of the occurrence of money."

The main reasons for creating financial pyramids

3. 7 reasons for the emergence of financial pyramids 📎

Financial pyramids begin to form at a time when a suitable political and economic situation.

The most important prerequisites for the onset of such fraudulent schemes are:

1. low inflation;
2. the state should have the principles of a market economy;
3. the country must have free circulation of securities;
4. legislative regulation of the creation and operation of such structures is poorly developed, there are no relevant norms;
5. income growth of the majority of the population;
6. citizens have free funds that they are ready to invest in a variety of financial structures;
7. low level of financial literacy of the population, as well as poor information support.

All these prerequisites are pushing enterprising people to create financial pyramids that violate the laws of the country.

4. The goals of creating financial pyramids

Financial pyramids are created to enrich their organizers and this is due to the influx of new investors. Sometimes, those who entered this scheme in the early stages of the formation of the pyramid, and then withdrew their funds on time, also get profit.

Contributions to the financial pyramid never invested anywhere. They are sent to pay rewards to the upper levels of participants.

In other wordsThose who have already joined the pyramid receive their money by attracting new and new participants. Thus, it is beneficial for all investors to attract as many people as possible into the scheme. Only in this case they will receive any profit.

Therefore, the pyramids are so quickly gaining popularity and have a high degree of distribution.

Sometimes, in order to cover the financial pyramid, a certain product is created. However, the essence of the scheme does not change from this. The product does not bring profit, it is formed solely from the contributions of new participants in the pyramid.

Despite the fact that the incoming funds are distributed according to various schemes, the main principle of any pyramid is the constant attraction of new participants in as much as possible.

Sooner or later, the influx of new investors is running out and at this point there is nothing to make payments to the participants of the pyramid. The result is always the same - the pyramid collapses.

Entering the pyramid, participants should be aware that not all will return their money (not to mention any income). Those who enter the pyramid last, for sure will lose all invested funds.

Usually, owners of a fraudulent scheme, when they see that the influx of depositors has declined, suspend payments. After that, they calmly collect the remains of accumulated funds and disappear in an unknown direction.

That is why you should not expect that you will be able to get rich by making dubious investments. It is difficult to determine at what stage the financial pyramid is, and when it will collapse. That is, the risk of losing money invested in the pyramid is always very high.

It is best to consider a reliable and profitable investment. For example, investing in a business can generate far more income than unknown and high-risk financial instruments.

How the financial pyramid works - the main stages of creation

5. The principle of operation of the financial pyramid - 3 stages of the classical pyramid

The idea of ​​financial pyramids would be incomplete if you did not study how they work. It is easiest to understand such a scheme by considering the stages of the existence of a pyramid using numerical values.

Stage number 1. Creating a pyramid (first level)

The organizer convinces 4 (four) participants to join the pyramid. Moreover, he takes from them 100$ as an entrance fee and promises to pay for each new member 25$.

The organizer's income at the first stage was 100 x 4 = 400$

Costs are $ 0

Stage number 2. Create a second level pyramid

Participants of the first level attract 4 (four) contributors to the pyramid on the same terms on which they themselves came. For each attracted depositor, participants of the first level receive 25$.

Income at the second stage: 4 x 4 x 100 = $ 1,600

Total revenue since inception: 400 + 1,600 = 2 000$

Costs: 4 x 4 x 25 = $ 400

Organizer net profit: 2,000 - 400 = $ 1,600

Stage number 3. Level 3 Creation

All participants of the third level introduce 4 new contributors into the pyramid (the conditions are the same).

Income in the third stage: 16 x 4 x 100 = $ 6,400

Total income since creation: 6,400 + 2,000 = 8 400$

Costs: 16 x 4 x 25 = $ 2,000

Organizer net profit: 8,400 - 2,000 = $ 6,400

This fundraising scheme can last a very long time. It is beneficial for the organizers that as many participants as possible enter the pyramid, because their profit depends on it.

However, the faster the circuit develops in the pyramid, the faster it will collapse. This is due to the fact that number of potential contributors always of course.

When the influx of new participants, and hence the cash flow runs out, the organizers of the pyramid disappear with the money collected at the moment.

Payments to depositors cease, and as a result, those who entered the pyramid at the last stage are left with nothing.

However, in modern society, such schemes classic financial pyramid are rare. Thanks to the development of the Internet, more and more new cheating options are emerging. Therefore, in order not to become victims of fraudsters, it is worthwhile to carefully study the signs of financial pyramids.

The main features of the financial pyramid

6. 20 signs how to determine the financial pyramid

Often, newcomers to the field of investment are convinced that they invest in projects that differ in development prospects, stability and high incomes. However, with a detailed analysis of investments, it turns out that they invest their money into an ordinary financial pyramid.

As a result, most novice investors very quickly lose their own funds. In order not to become a victim and not to fall into such a situation, it is important to learn to recognize fraudulent schemes. It is impossible to do this without knowing the main signs of financial pyramids.

Today, due to the global development of the Internet, financial pyramids are widespread. Online every day are being created and crumble a huge number of pyramids. At the same time, there are so-called offline pyramids that are not connected to the Internet.

Part of the pyramids is created by restarting previously existing projects. In this case, the scheme burns out, the accounts are reset, and the process starts again. It’s not uncommon for the owners of one already collapsed pyramid to create a new one, just changing its name.

Many creators of modern pyramids came from the famous MMM-2011 scheme. The names of these projects are huge. But it’s worth remembering that HYIP, and matrices, and many other schemes have signs of financial pyramids.

Every day in the mail, social networks, skype people find a huge number of offers to join various highly profitable projects. Meet calls for participation in the pyramids can also be on sites with job offers, as well as projects dedicated to making money online.

We wrote about making money on the Internet without investments and cheating in our last article, where we considered only reliable and proven ways to make money on the network.

It cannot be argued that everyone who enters the pyramid will necessarily lose their capital, since those who join the scheme earlier than others manage to earn decent money.

However do not forget that the percentage of getting into their number is very small, because the share of those who made a profit in the total number of participants is very small. Therefore, in order to recognize in advance whether the project is a financial pyramid, it is important to know their distinguishing features. About them and will be discussed below.

Sign 1. High level of promised income.

Experienced investors know that investments under 25-35% per annum can already be called quite risky. If such a return is promised in a month, there are obvious signs of a pyramid on the face.

Sign 2. The condition for generating income is to attract new participants.

This sign unambiguously indicates that the project is a financial pyramid. Sometimes companies hide behind the fact that they act like financial pyramids.

However, do not forget about the essence of the action of such schemes: new participants are needed so that their contributions go to the income of the old participants and the provision of profit to the organizers.

Sign 3. The scheme of income payments is blurry or too abstruse.

In other words, the investor is promised huge returns, which can be obtained by fulfilling certain conditions. Moreover, all the necessary conditions contain a huge number of points.

It is clear that in such cases there is certainly a reason not to pay the funds, referring to the fact that one of the clauses of the agreement has not been fulfilled.

Sign 4. Guarantee of income

None of the investment methods can guarantee an investor income. Therefore, if advertising guarantees income, and even very high, this may indicate the presence of pyramid signs in the company's actions.

Symptom 5. Income is paid to depositors thanks to new members of the company

This feature follows from the scheme of the pyramid. Since there is no real profit, the only way to pay income is to attract new investors.

Symptom 6. Coercion to make periodic contributions or to buy company goods

If the company requires regular participation in investing deposit money or to purchase goods that they do not need at high prices, then the organization does not receive profit from its activities. It is kept afloat only thanks to the infusions of the participants in the scheme.

Symptom 7. The product is similar to fictitious or is sold at too much overpriced

Such a sign allows you to figure out whether the company is a financial pyramid or simply acts as part of network marketing. In the latter case, a real product is distributed at real prices.

Details about the principle of network marketing and what it is, we wrote in a separate article.

The pyramid, on the other hand, sells something like a Cuban berry, which after collection is sent to Japan, where it is made from it, which is infused in Italy. The result is a tool that allows you to quickly lose weight and costs 399$ per 100 grams.

In practice, at best, they sell an infusion of ordinary field herbs. Such sales clearly indicate fraudulent schemes.

Symptom 8. Continuous Motivation

The creators of the pyramids constantly convince their investors that work is akin to slavery, every adequate person seeks to receive passive income, to financial independence. Founders claimthat their company allows you to get rid of employers, for this it is enough to work in a friendly team and for its benefit. What exactly is passive income and how can it be created, you can read in our article.

Such motivation exerts tremendous psychological pressure on everyone who has at least small financial difficulties. Seeing in the appeals an ideal way to earn money, people carry their money to the company.

In practice, make money on the pyramids fails to almost no one. Money can only be received by the creators, as well as their immediate environment, which is usually located at the upper levels of the scheme. And then they will earn only if they are not brought to justice.

Symptom 9. Advertising that does not contain specific information

The advertisement calls for joining a unique, super-profitable, innovative project. However, there is no explicit indication of which one.

Sign 10. Calls to hurry to invest

Such slogans contain a hint that only the first investors will be able to earn real money.

Before you invest your money you need to carefully understand all the details of investing and in no case to rush into investments. We also recommend reading our material - “Where to invest to receive monthly income”, where the basic and proven methods of investing are considered.

Symptom 11. Calls to act now

This symptom is very similar to the previous one. Slogans to join the project Today, in a week and the like, aim at psychological pressure. They press on the subconscious, hinting that in the near future a tempting offer will end. It is better to stay away from such slogans.

Sign 12. Information is contained only in video presentations.

Most often different video messages, presentations, meeting notes and workshopsshowing a huge number of participants and the distribution of money, are a clear sign of the pyramids. For the first time, such methods of attracting investors in our country were used by Sergey Mavrodi.

It should be remembered that real investment companies use a much wider arsenal of ways to tell about themselves and attract customers.

Symptom 13. Anonymity

Information about the creators of the project is not advertised anywhere, they are simply not available, it is almost impossible to find out who created and manages the project.

Sometimes in the financial pyramids refer to the fact that such information constitutes a trade secret.

Symptom 14. To learn more about the project, you need to attend a seminar or meeting

Potential investors are attracted to a variety of events. Sometimes this type of attraction is also used by network marketing companies and financial brokers.

However, in combination with other signs from the list, such actions indicate the construction of a pyramid. Moreover, in the case of the pyramids, the participants in the meeting are actively persuading to invest money using various psychological techniques.

Symptom 15. Reference in the contract to the absence of the company's obligation to return the funds invested in it

The creators of the pyramids are usually quite well-versed in the legal plan. Therefore, insuring against various legal proceedings, they are in the contract exclude clauses on company obligations to investorsas well as money back guarantees.

Often when investing in pyramids, investments are made out as donations or voluntary contributions. At the same time, it is suggested to investors that it is impossible to make investments otherwise and give various legal reasons. However, such tricks should alert investors, as they explicitly indicate the financing of the pyramid.

Symptom 16. The company is registered abroad, usually in the offshore

Often you can come across an offer to invest in profitable foreign companies. Registration at a distance from Russia may indicate a pyramid, since it will be practically impossible to hold a company (organization) responsible.

Symptom 17. The company is generally absent

In this case, the legal entity is not registered at all. A certain number of ordinary private (individuals) individuals exchange money.

True, in such schemes, the project owners do not try to hide that they organized the usual financial pyramid.

Symptom 18. There are no licenses for financial activities

In Russia, only those companies that have received a license for such activities can attract funds from individuals. Its absence indicates the illegality of the activity.

Symptom 19. Investors are not warned about the risks

Any investment option is accompanied by risks. Companies should warn investors about this. Therefore, if a risk warning absent or even the investor is promised risk-free investments, it is almost safe to say that this is a financial pyramid.

Sign 20. Prohibition of disclosure of secrets

If an investor is asked to sign an agreement on non-disclosure of trade secrets about the contribution made and the conditions of investment, most likely there is a financial pyramid. Honest companies are unlikely to hide such information.

There are a lot of signs of financial pyramids, but it is not necessary that they be present all at once. But not necessarily the presence of any sign means that the company is a financial pyramid. The main thing is that the manifestation of such signs should alert investors.

It is also important to know that most modern pyramids disguise themselves as the following organizations:

• investment firms;
• financial companies;
• organizations whose activities are related to network marketing;
• brokers.

It is important for a novice investor to learn to determine whether a project is a financial pyramid.

7. Types of financial pyramids (single-level, multi-level, matrix)

All fraud schemes based on the principles of the pyramid, in accordance with their inherent structure of construction, can divided into 3 (three) groups. Some creators assure that they managed to create a qualitatively new scheme. However, with careful analysis, any of them can be attributed to one of the following groups.

1st type of financial pyramids - single-level

7.1. Single-level pyramids or Ponzi scheme

This type of pyramid is considered the simplest and therefore the most common. The name of the Ponzi scheme comes from the name of the Italian scammer, who for the first time managed to fool the population in this way.

The organizer of the pyramid in this case attracts participants to it, guaranteeing a quick profit. It is enough to make a contribution, it is not necessary to attract new participants.

To the first depositors, the owner of the scheme pays income from his funds. When the glory of the pyramid begins to grow, the funds of new investors go to reward the old. As a result, the glory of the project as bringing real income inevitably growing. Consequently, the number of participants is increasing. Many investors make additional contributions.

Such pyramids most often position themselves as charitable or investment funds as well mutual assistance projects. Naturally, this is just a cover, really no activity is being conducted.

Inevitably, in the process of developing the financial pyramid, a moment comes when obligations to a huge number of participants are constantly increasing, and the entry of new investors into the scheme is decreasing. At this time, the project owner completes the activity and disappears with the collected money.

The lifespan of such a pyramid is determined by how popular it is. Usually it is from 4 to 24 months. After the collapse of the pyramid, profit remains no more than 20% all investors.

There are several examples of pyramids built according to the Ponzi scheme:

• MMM, created by Sergei Mavrodi;
• Tannenbaum AIDS Medicines Project;
• iPhone pyramid;
• and others.

7.2. Tiered financial pyramids

2nd type of financial pyramids - multilevel

The scheme for constructing such a pyramid is similar to the structure of network marketing companies. Such pyramids usually hide behind trading activities or highly profitable investments.

However, even when the product is there, it is of poor quality and not worth the price set for it. Such products are designed to divert the attention of investors, where such structures usually promise income in excess of 100% per annum and reaching 450-500%.

Each member of the project must make an entry fee. The funds obtained in this way distributed among participantslocated at higher levels - those who invited the newcomer and several standing above him.

Next, the new participant should attract several new ones into the structure. Most often, it is required to bring from 2 (two) to 5 (five) contributors. To do this, they are directly or veiled to him that the project needs new participants, and only if they are involved depositor will begin to earn income, gradually recouping the invested funds and going into profit.

It turns out that, as well as in Ponzi scheme, money is redistributed between investors. The number of levels is gradually growing, while the number of participants is growing exponentially.

At about 10-15 levels, the number of investors can be equated to the population of the whole state.

Sooner or later, the moment will come when there will simply be no one else to attract. It was at this time that the organizer minimizes the project and disappears with all the money collected. As a result about 90% depositors lose all their investments.

Multilevel financial pyramids do not exist for long. Most often, their collapse occurs no later than six months after its creation. To extend the life of the pyramid, the organizers change its name, location or go online.

The most famous structures of this type are:

• Talk Fusion
• MMM 2011 and 2012;
• Binar.

7.3. Matrix Type Financial Pyramids

Such pyramids are sophisticated layered structures. Real goods are often present here, for example, precious metals, slimming teas or fictional paid programs for training novice businessmen.

3rd type of financial pyramids - matrix projects

Despite the fact that such companies belong to the pyramids, many sincerely believe that this is a new type of investment.

The scheme of work of such companies is approximately as follows:

1. When entering the project, the participant pays the down payment. After that, he waits for the entire level to be filled.
2. As soon as the lower level is full, the matrix will be divided into two identical ones, and our participant will rise one level up.
3. Now you need to attract more participants to fill the lower level.
4. Thus, further division of the matrices takes place gradually, and the participant will gradually rise higher and higher.
5. As soon as the participant reaches the first level in his matrix, he will be paid a reward. It can be money or a commodity, such as a bar of gold. If you wish, you can sell the product to the company itself.

In fact, it turns out that during the creation of the matrix pyramid, lower-level participants are discounted on the purchase of a gift to a first-level participant. Each downstream member gradually moves up. To speed up this process, it can help attract new investors.

Important to understandthat in the conditions of matrix-type pyramids it is very vaguely indicated how to get the proper reward. Most often it is indicated here that for this it is necessary to wait until the matrix is ​​filled. However, it is not clear when this will happen and whether it will happen at all.

However, matrix pyramids are longer than others. But do not hope: a collapse will certainly happen to them.

To conclude this section, we compare 3 (three) types of pyramids. For convenience, the comparison result is presented in the table.

As can be seen from the table, the pyramids break up in any case. Therefore, we recommend a more thorough approach to investing your money and choose the most reliable of them. For example, it is better to choose a real estate investment than invest in highs or other dubious projects.

8. What is the difference between the financial pyramid and network marketing companies

Many people think that network marketing and financial pyramids - one and the same phenomenon. This is due to the fact that with a superficial comparison, these two concepts have certain common features. However, it is important for investors to learn to distinguish between them.

Network Marketing Is A Legitimate Option promotion of goods from manufacturers to consumers, while several intermediaries are excluded. In such structures, the income of each participant is compiled on the basis of the amount of goods that their wards will be able to realize.

It turns out that if participants in the scheme do not buy or sell anything, but simply go through registration, they do not receive income. Moreover, registration in network marketing companies is absolutely free or the admission fee is very small - up to 500 (five hundred) rubles.

Problems often begin in situations where the pyramid is trying to disguise itself as network marketing. To determine what kind of company it is, it is important to look for signs of financial pyramids, which we described above in the article.

Types of financial pyramids on the Internet - magic wallets and hypes

9. The financial pyramids on the Internet (online) - HYIPs and wallets

The development of the Internet makes it much easier create and develop financial pyramids. This allows you to expand the geographical reach of potential investors. At the same time, significantly decreased advertising costs.

The development of the structure of the pyramids contributes to the complexity of tracking the movement of funds through electronic payment systems.

Sites are rarely registered on real persons, or information about the owner is hidden. When creating pyramids on the Internet, it is difficult to find a fraudster in their collapse in order to bring to justice.

The largest financial pyramid in the network - Stock generation. Its organizer is the notorious Sergey Mavrodi. It was a certain gamble. In accordance with the terms of this game, shares of non-existent virtual firms were traded.

The terms were similar to stock trading: stock prices moved both up and down. The pyramid lasted 2 (two) years. After it collapsed, a huge number of people suffered: according to various sources, from 300 (three hundred) thousand to several million people.

Another very large project from Mavrodi - pyramids MMM-2011 and 2012. In order to create them, the “Mavro” was invented, which is a virtual currency.

In the first draft it was bought and sold through members managing the levels.

In the second - the calculations were carried out between the participants of the pyramid directly, the essence of the project came down to the mutual assistance fund. Naturally, the influx of participants and cash contributions came to naught. Money from the pyramids began to plunder, the pyramids began to close.

Mavrodi tried several times to restart the project. However, the credibility of the creator decreased significantly, so the size of the pyramids became much smaller.

Internet pyramids are very diverse and the most popular among them are 2 (two) groups: hyps, as well as magic wallets. Let's try to understand the features of each of these schemes.

9.1. HYIPs (type of financial pyramid)

HYIPs or, in other words, HYIP projects are investment projects that promise high profitability. Hyipas are built on the principle of a financial pyramid.

Such projects are covered by investments in securities, mutual funds, sometimes claim to be engaged trust management. In some cases, the organizers of hype do not report anything about what activities they carry out.

Some Internet users have the opinion that you can make good money on investments in HYIPs, the main thing is to invest correctly. Moreover, there are publications on the Internetin which the participants in such projects describe in detail the correct strategies for investing in hype. They tell you how to invest in such a way as to exit the project on time (before the hype collapse) and make a substantial profit.

But do not forgetthat such Internet projects are organized according to the principle of ordinary pyramids. They inevitably go through all the stages of development inherent in the pyramids. Therefore, sooner or later, a hype crash occurs without fail.

In the pyramids there is a movement of funds from one participant to another, therefore, it is possible that someone will be able to earn on hyipas. However, they will do this through contributions from new investors. Moreover, the percentage of the lucky is very low. Anyway most of the contributions will settle in the pockets of the pyramid organizers.

Hypas are similar to some real companies and financial instruments. For example, there are venture capital funds on the Internet, which are one of many ways to invest. These companies are engaged in real investment in high-income financial instruments. Like HYIPs, such investments on the Internet are at high risk.

It turns out that these two types of companies are very similar and it is important for investors to be able to distinguish between them. There are a number of characteristics that are characteristic of hype projects, but not inherent in venture funds.

Among them are the following:

• investment objects are invented or do not correspond to reality;
• the site is designed too colorful;
• the essence of the project is blurred, it is not completely clear what it consists of;
• too intrusive advertising, claiming that the return of funds is guaranteed, there is no risk of investment, too aggressively convincing to invest;
• it is impossible to find the data of the organizer - the name of the company, address, phone number, who manages;
• there is no evidence of licenses, registration certificates, or these documents are fake;
• the promised income level exceeds 1-2% per day, however there are hypes where this indicator is equal to 0,5%, this attribute cannot be applied to them;
• blurry or too difficult conditions for profit.

To carry out the transfer of funds to HYIPs, electronic wallets are usually used, in which you do not need to identify yourself, for example Qiwi, Perfect money, Payeer. As a result, it becomes almost impossible to calculate real counterparty data.

Anything that implies at least minimal personal identification is not acceptable for HYIPs. Almost all similar projects for this reason refuse to use the WebMoney payment system.

Three types of hypes can be distinguished depending on the income level:

9.1.1. Low income

The lifespan of such financial pyramids is from one and a half to three years. Moreover, the promised income is at a level not exceeding 15% per month. Many hype of this type promise to pay 0.5% per day.

Traditionally, pyramids of this type are covered by companies that carry out the functions of trust management of various assets. At the same time, it is often difficult to distinguish low-profitable hype from legal schemes.

9.1.2. Profitable

The lifespan of financial pyramids created in the form of medium-profit highs is from 6 (six) to 12 (twelve) months. The profitability here is much higher than in the previous category and is about 3% per day. In a month, when investing in such HYIPs, profitability at the level of 15-60%.

Such financial pyramids are characterized by rapid growth in popularity. This means that its peak will be reached very quickly, that is, the collapse of the pyramid will not keep you waiting.

9.1.3. Highly profitable

Such financial pyramids are developing rapidly. About 2-5 weeks they go through the whole life cycle. Moreover, the promised yield exceeds 3% per day or more than 60% per month.

These hyps are closing quickly and completely unexpected. Therefore, the goal of the project is to attract a large number of investors as quickly as possible and this is done through extremely aggressive and intrusive advertising.

The slogans guarantee a huge income if investors register here and now.

For the creation and successful functioning of HYIPs, not only their significance organizers, but also referrers. Under this concept, people who are engaged in the promotion of the pyramid are united. They distribute advertising on the Internet about the creation of the project.

Besides, the most important task of the referral is the agitation of network users to join hype, that is, attracting as many new investors as possible.

It is the competent actions of the referralists that determine the further success of the project. They act as agents of the financial pyramid. Therefore, the cooperation of the organizers of the pyramid and referrals is carried out by concluding an agency agreement.

Interaction is carried out through various affiliate programs, that is, referrals earn money in the form of a percentage of the contributions attracted by depositors. This easily explains why referrers are so active in promoting hype.

They post colorful and detailed stories (most often, of course, fictional), about how they hit the jackpot by joining the project. Referees do this on various blogs, social networks, and also on forums.

Often, the hype organizers offer their participants to independently search for new investors using a referral program. As a result, the speed of hype promotion on the Internet is increasing, providing a significant cash flow.

By analogy with the pyramid, during the growth of the popularity of the HYIP project, the promised rewards are paid to its participants. Such efficient functioning has been going on for some time. At some point, the flow of income begins to decline, the inflow of money becomes less than the volume of payments. This becomes a signal for the organizers that it is time to wind down the project. Hype closes, and the money collected by that time remains with its creators.

In this way, you can earn on highsbut remain in profit project creatorsthose who actively spins it, as well as depositorswho managed to pick up their money on time.

However, the number of winners is negligible compared to the number of participants who, as a result lose their money.

9.2. Magic wallets are a special type of financial pyramid scheme.

Recently, a curious way to earn money, called "Magic wallets".

The essence of the earnings method is quite simple: you should send a small amount of money (most often from 10 to 70 rubles) for seven wallets. Electronic money systems are commonly used for this purpose. Yandex and Webmoney. After that, delete the upper wallet number, enter your own instead.

It remains to place an advertising message on as many forums, message boards as possible. Often, such messages can be found on sites where people are looking for work.

Many believe that if all actions are done correctly, enough about 100 (one hundred) or 200 (two hundred) messages, so that huge amounts of money begin to come to the wallet. The explanation is simple: the next ones who entered the project will transfer money to the wallet, after which they will also begin to actively promote the message.

In reality, it turns out that the system of work of magic wallets is an ordinary financial pyramid. However, it is not subject to any control.

Earn in this way is almost impossible. Firstly, there is no guarantee that those who decide to continue the message chain will send money to previous wallets. Secondly, they can cross out not one wallet number, as stated in the instructions, but more, writing their own instead.

But even if we assume that each next participant will do everything according to the instructions, the pyramid will grow at a tremendous pace. Even the population of the entire planet Earth will not be enough to cover 4-5 of its levels.

In theory, of course, the first participant through 2-3 levels can earn about a million rubles, and this provided that each new member will be able to attract 5 people. However, in practice, this situation absolutely unreal due to the same lack of participants.

Thus, enrichment using magic wallets will definitely not work. Moreover, electronic payment systems make every effort to combat such schemes. They may well block the wallets indicated in advertising (spam) messages.

Services involved in electronic payment systems security and financial monitoring carefully monitor the appearance of such messages on the network.

Within a few days, for this reason, the pyramids cease to exist.

10. List of old and new financial pyramids in Russia - from MMM Mavrodi to the latest

In Russia, the first financial pyramids appeared after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the early years of the transition to a market economy, a huge part of the country's population suffered from them.

The largest and most notorious pyramid is considered by many JSC "MMM". The date of creation of the company is considered to be 1989. However, at that time she was conducting quite legitimate activities.

In 1994, MMM JSC began to operate according to the financial pyramid scheme.. Project Organizer - Sergey Mavrodi engaged in the active issue of 2 (two) types of securities:

1. shares were issued almost 27 million;
2. tickets were also issued - more 72 million.

In the media there was an active advertising of the company (pyramids). Everyone who was conscious at that time remembers the advertisement about Lena Golubkov. This, as well as promises to investors of a yield of from 500 (five hundred) to 1000 (thousand)%led a huge number of contributors to the pyramid. According to rough estimates, about 10-15 million Russian citizens.

No documents were issued to depositors; there was no free sale of MMM securities. In fact, only the company itself could acquire them. The value of securities was determined directly by the organizer.

Around the MMM pyramid there was an unprecedented stir, which led to a sharp increase in the company's securities price. As a result, in a short time, stocks with a face value of 1000 (thousand) rubles, began to cost 125 000 rubles apiece. Naturally, the real price for them was much lower.

Information has begun to spread among investors that the organizer of MMM Mavrodi has problems with law. He was accused of conducting illegal business activities, as well as problems with the tax authorities.

Panic was growing among the population. As a result, the value of securities started to plummet. As a result, they became cheaper about a hundred times. In fact, the securities of MMM JSC have become useless, worthless "candy wrappers".

The result was the storming of the MMM office, where Mavrodi was arrested. The organizer of the pyramid was awarded 4.5 years in prison. The damage suffered by the population of the country from the actions of the entrepreneur totals about 3 (three) billion rubles.

At the same time, Mavrodi managed to shift the blame for the collapse of the pyramid to the state. He claimed that a successful company, which promised many citizens enrichment, was deliberately destroyed.

Subsequently, Sergey Mavrodi created other financial pyramids:

• Stock Generation, operating on the Internet;
• MMM-2011;
• MMM Global Republic of Bitcoin.

In connection with the resounding success of the MMM financial pyramid in Russia in 90s (nineties) and 2000s (two thousandths) years, other similar projects were created.

The most popular among them were:

• Lordin;
• Rubin (SAN);
• Russian house of the Selenga;
• Hopper invest;
• Tibet.

The number of victims of the pyramid schemes there were millions of people in Russia. In each of the schemes, citizens lost from several million to several trillion rubles.

Almost all the organizers of the financial pyramids were imprisoned, some managed to escape in an unknown direction.

Despite the deplorable consequences of the pyramids at that time, they continued to exist.

The explanation is quite simple: most people want to get rich without doing anything for it. Since almost all people are rather greedy and gullible, ready to invest in any projects that promise unprecedented profits.

A huge role in the existence of financial pyramids was played by the development of the Internet. Through the network it is much easier to carry out advertising campaigns, as well as take part in various projects. For investors, the pyramids can be compared to a casino: it is almost impossible to guess whether he will win or lose money.

List of new financial pyramids that are popular:

• MMM 2012 and 2016;
• SuperKopilka;
• Recyclis;
• Eleurus
• Credex and others.

Due to the huge number of victims of financial pyramid schemes in Russia, legislation was revised.

To date, for the organization and distribution of such schemes introduced criminal and administrative responsibility.

11. What to do if money has already been invested in a financial pyramid

It happens that people first invest money and only then they realize that the project they invested is ordinary financial pyramid. What to do in this case?

Experts recommend starting to calm down, since in this case it is difficult for a person to assess the situation and make the right decision. Next, a thorough analysis of the current situation should be carried out and necessary measures should be taken to resolve it.

Professionals suggest taking the following measures:

1. Contact the office of the company to which the funds were transferred. In cases where this is not possible for any reason, you should contact the person who received the invitation to join the project. It is important to understand that the probability of a return on invested funds is higher if there are any documents confirming the transfer of money.
2. If fraudsters refuse to return the invested funds, you should notify them of their intention to file applications with the prosecutor and the police.
3. If threats do not take effect, you must immediately contact the law enforcement authorities. At the same time, it is necessary to recall the maximum of known information: the name and address of the company, detailed signs of the persons with whom communication took place, what promises they make, that they sell other useful data.

Important! Write a statement as quickly as possible, since it is likely that by the time law enforcement agencies begin to take action on it, the scammers will already be hiding.

12. Conclusion + view on the topic

Despite the huge number of victims of investing in financial pyramids, people continue to invest in such schemes.Someone does not know about the possibility of fraud, someone expects to withdraw funds before the collapse. In any case, it is useful for each investor to know what signs indicate financial pyramids.

If it so happened that funds have already been contributed to the fraudulent scheme, you should try to return your money without unnecessary panic.

We offer to watch the video - “What is a financial pyramid?”:

In conclusion, we suggest watching a documentary about MMM:

The team of the magazine Rich Pro wishes you good luck and success in financial matters. If you have any comments or have questions about the topic, then ask them in the comments below.

Watch the video: What The Pyramid On The Back Of A One Dollar Bill Means (December 2024).